Ah, the Summer Olympics; the one time every four years where it is truly OK to sit around the house all afternoon and evening since, you know, you are being patriotic and supporting some stellar athletes. However, in case you were too busy to catch up or simply don't find the Olympics as exciting as I do, I hope to dazzle you with the fact that the United States completely dominated in Rio and earned 121 medals in all, breaking the original record set back in London in 2012 with 103.
First, in the gymnasium, we had the "Final Five" reigning across the board with Simone Biles stealing the spotlight on the balance beam, Aly Raisman, and Laurie Hernandez wooing the audience during their floor performances, Madison Kocian nailing her flips and twists on the uneven bars and the veteran, Gabby Douglas, bringing an excellent effort to the team as a whole. These girls thoroughly brought their A-game when it came to competing on the floor and also, off the floor encouraging and rooting on alongside their fellow teammates when they completed their routines. But, in addition, the girls' were taken by surprise as Zac Efron made a guest appearance in the stands (talk about a number one fan).
On Copacabana Beach, we had Keri Walk Jennings and her partner--in-crime, April Ross, score bronze in volleyball after making a remarkable comeback from their loss against Brazil. Though Jennings has gold running through her veins, it made me (and I am sure her as well) incredibly proud to see that their work did not go unrecognized or undecorated. Likewise, on the courts, we had both the men and women teams earn bronze, which, nonetheless, was a major accomplishment.
However, on the basketball court, the women dribbled and dunked their way up to the top and ended up champions, earning themselves the gold against their final match versus Spain.
On the track, there was a clean sweep in the 100-meter hurdles by Americans, Brianna Rollins, Nia Ali and Kristi Castlin, making this a "first ever" in Olympic history.
In the blue swimming pool (yes, I had to clarify due to was a filter issue in the diver's pool earlier on in the week which made the water green), making her mark in the pool was Simone Manuel, the first African-American woman to win a gold in an individual swimming event (Who runs the world? Girls!) and if you happen to miss the reaction on her face when she won, allow me to show you:
Watching her compete even left me that speechless as she defied all odds. In an interview, she even stated herself that she was in complete shock upon earning such a high honor.
Secondly, we had Katie Ledecky who made a major breakthrough in her swimming career in comparison to four years ago and racked up four golds and a silver. (Phelps better watch out, she may be breaking his record one day!)
Then, the women's water polo team ended up dominating over Italy, 12-5, and one player, in particular, Ashleigh Johnson, was given major props for her consistency and practically immaculate hand-eye-coordination skill. (Not to mention how incredibly high she could reach out of the water and deflect the ball with her massive wing span.)
And last but certainly not least, we had the legend himself, Michael Phelps ending his career with a "splash" and "swimming" off into the sunset with some new bling. He earned six medals (five gold and one silver...insanity) and now, he has a grand total of 28 medals. In fact, if we were to make Michael Phelps a country, only counting his gold medal count, he would be tied with South Africa in 38th place for the most gold medals earned. From this standing, he would be ahead of 32 teams competing in Rio right now.
While it is unfortunate that Phelps will not be returning back to the 2020 Olympics taking place in Tokyo, I most certainly cannot wait to see who rises to the top and continues their career as an Olympian. Will there still be a "Final Five?" Will Katie Ledecky return even stronger than ever? Will Boomer Phelps be participating? These are the question I yearn to have answered.